18 February 2009

I Know the Muffin Man

"The Muffin Man" was always a favorite song in my house growing up. I'm not sure why, because (contrary to popular belief) I wasn't raised in Victorian England, and no one was prancing down the lane delivering fresh baked goods.

But there were always plenty of muffins at home, thanks to our dear friend Thomas. I have yet to make my own English muffins, but I do make plenty of American-style ones. And in an attempt to soothe the savage sugar cravings, I decided on a variety, originally from Martha Stewart Living, that can actually be called healthy. The sweet comes more naturally from applesauce and dates, two of my favorite foods.

These muffins aren't cupcakes-disguised-as-breakfast- whose ubiquity here I still blame on the incomprehensible glorification of Sex and the City and Magnolia bakery- so don't expect that sort of saccharine-fueled mental or dental decay.

Rather, they're full-flavored, spicy and moist, rendering any jam or butter completely unnecessary. Eating one will make you feel virtuous, but not in an annoying way- more like in a Little House on the Prairie way.

And you get to one-up those rusted-pot coffee-drinking pioneers by pairing it with mao jian ($4 per ounce), which may be the first Chinese green tea I could grow to love. It has a light, natural sweetness as opposed to the earthy flavor of many Chinese greens, and a soft edge of floral notes, like a strong white tea.

And I'm loathe to admit it, but mao jian would probably go equally well with a cupcake.

9 comments:

My dad used to pay me 50 cents to make him a batch of 24 bran muffins. He ate, like six of them a day for a year or two. I haven't tasted one since, but my love affair with fiber tells me that I should get back on the wagon. This recipe sounds like a winner!

YES!I came across this post on Tastespotting (I think) over a year ago; I wrote down the recipe, made it many, many times, and then lost it and have been trying to find this post for a while now.So, this is way late but these muffins are fantastic! I make them with white-whole wheat flour, and sometimes oat bran (because I misread the title and bought oat bran specifically for this recipe), and every single variation I've made of these have been *so* delicious. :)